Silly Billy
by Cuthbert72
Summary: Sid is in hospital after starving himself for a week. Cassie visits him. This is in effect a possible sequel to just-another-writer20's "Wouldn't it be lovely". It will be AU as Cassie hasn't attempted suicide. Jal talked her out of it. The situation forces the couple to discuss their relationship and declare their deep love for each other. - A one-shot


Sid had managed to end up in hospital unconscious and severely dehydrated. Prompted by Cassie's remark that she hadn't eaten for three days so she would be lovely, he had starved himself for a week. Unlike Cassie, Sid was not used to a lack of food. At the end of the week, he collapsed and earned himself a ride in the back of an ambulance.

Not long after he regained consciousness, a nurse came to tell him he had a visitor. Sid was not expecting anyone to call on him. 'Who could it be' he thought. It was unlikely to be his father, with whom he had a rather abrasive relationship. He was not expecting anyone else.

"Who is it?" asked Sid weakly.

"A young blonde lady." said the nurse, "And she's very pretty. It's obvious that someone cares about you."

Cassie entered the ward and sat down by Sid's bedside.

"Good afternoon, Sid." said Cassie, gently, "And just how did you end up in here?"

"Don't laugh at me when I tell you," said Sid, "But I was trying to find out what it felt like not to eat anything for a period. I suppose I took it a bit too far. I was trying to find out what it was like being you."

"I appreciate that, my dear Sidney," said Cassie, looking concerned, "But don't you think that was rather a stupid thing to do. For a start, you stopped suddenly when you were used to eating normally. Also, I guess you weren't drinking very much. Anyway, how did it feel?"

"Painful." said Sid, "How on earth do you do it, Cass? After three days, my belly ached and I felt washed out."

"For a start," said Cassie, "I'm used to not eating very much, so if I stop completely for a couple of days, it's no big deal. You, on the other hand, are used to having three meals every day, with snacks in between. Stopping suddenly like you did is never a good idea. Do you realise that you were so dehydrated when you came in, you could have died."

"Really?" commented Sid, "I just felt that by stopping eating for a while, I might be able to understand you better."

"Oh, you silly billy, dear Sid!" said Cassie, smiling, "You don't have to nearly kill yourself to get to understand me. I'm told there were psychological reasons for what I used to do. You don't have those reasons. In any case, I love you, and I don't want to lose you."

"You do?" said Sid.

"Of course I do," said Cassie, "And I think you love me, but you're frightened to admit it."

"There's no fooling you, Cass." said Sid, "I may as well admit it. I do love you. I was already falling for you when we were on that trampoline at Abigail's party, but back then, I didn't admit it even to myself."

"Why didn't you admit it to yourself?" asked Cassie, "I could tell that you more than liked me. That's why I linked my fingers with yours."

"I just had this feeling that I wasn't good enough for you." said Sid, "In my heart, I realised I was falling for you, but I was frightened that telling you how I felt would drive you away."

"Once again, dear Sid, you are a silly billy." said Cassie, smiling again, "When your heart talks to you, you should listen, and take notice. As for you not being good enough for me. That's nonsense. You're the only boy who has really tried to get to know me. I appreciate that. I also appreciate that you're yourself when we're together. You're not putting on an act to impress me, so don't put yourself down."

"I'll try not to." said Sid, "But I've been called 'useless' so many times by both Tony and my dad, that I'm beginning to believe it."

"You're not useless, Sid." said Cassie "You're a sweet, gentle, thoughtful and affectionate young man, who cares about the people around him. Don't pay any attention to Tony's insults. You seem to be a much nicer person when he's not around."

"Thank you." said Sid, surprised.

Sid felt he was blushing following this comment from Cassie. He was just beginning to realise that she genuinely cared about him. This was the first time he had experienced this from someone outside his family and he was not used to it.

Cassie gently placed her hand on Sid's and stroked it.

"Sid," said Cassie, after a pause. "There's something I want you to promise me. This is important."

"What's that?" asked Sid.

"I want you to promise." said Cassie, "That you will never pull a stunt like this again. I've been worried about you all week. I watched you fading away, getting more 'vague' somehow. I didn't know what was wrong. When you collapsed, I was frightened I was about to lose my only true friend. Please promise me."

Cassie smiled sweetly, tilted her head and looked straight into Sid's eyes. He felt uncomfortable and somewhat guilty. He was not used to Cassie being so direct with him.

"I know I'm not going to win when you look at me like that." said Sid, "Alright Cass, I won't do that again. This talk is making me realise just how much I must mean to you."

"You do mean a lot to me, Sid." said Cassie, "I do love you. I suppose I started to fall for you when I first saw you outside Abigail's party, when I said I liked it that you were 'funny looking'."

"I didn't realise you felt that way about me," said Sid, "Otherwise I'd have been more forthcoming about my own feelings. I'm sorry, Cass. I was emotionally 'thick' and couldn't read your feelings."

"That's because you're a boy." said Cassie, grinning, "All boys are like that until they fall in love. Anyway, how much were you drinking when you were starving yourself?"

"Probably less than half of what I normally do." admitted Sid, "I usually have a drink when I eat, but I cut those out as well."

"For a third time, you silly billy," said Cassie, "No wonder you ended up in here after a week. You can go for quite a long time without food, but if you don't drink, you will die in a few days."

"Really?" queried Sid.

"Yes, really." said Cassie, "This is serious. I think it was Bear Grylls who came up with a rule of three. You can live for three minutes without air, three days without water and three weeks without food. You were trying to exist without food and less than half the water you needed. Drinking more would have reduced the pain, kept you hydrated, and reduced the acid in your stomach. Your doctor said that you were near the point of no return when you were brought in."

"I'll bear that in mind next time." said Sid.

"You promised me there wouldn't be a 'next time'." said Cassie, "I love you and I don't want to lose you. I know you had the best of intentions, but starving yourself to experience the pain was just about your worst decision. Don't ever try that again. In any case, now I'm assured of your love and companionship, I feel more secure in my own skin. I feel more comfortable about food. It's better if I eat than you starve to death."

"I suppose that makes sense." said Sid, "I'm sorry if I worried you, I didn't mean to. I just wanted to feel what real hunger felt like."

"You should have stopped the fast when you started to feel bad." said Cassie, "By carrying on to the point of collapse, you did neither of us any good. I just hope you haven't done any permanent damage to yourself."

"I hope so too." said Sid, "I'm glad you were concerned enough to come and visit me. Now I know you're such a good friend, I want our relationship to last."

"Me too." said Cassie, "I wasn't going to tell you this so soon, but I've got this strange and beautiful feeling that I'm going to love you forever."

"You are?" queried Sid.

"Yes, sweet Sid," said Cassie, "And that's the problem."

"In what way?" asked Sid.

"For a start," said Cassie, "You still seem to have this enormous crush on Michelle. Also, you still seem to take too much notice of Tony."

"He is my best friend." said Sid.

"He's also Michelle's boyfriend," said Cassie, "And when you get involved with his schemes, I'm quite often the one who gets hurt."

"For instance?" queried Sid.

"For instance, the evening of the choir concert, Sid." said Cassie, "You'd been grounded, but you still let Tony persuade you to go out. The result was that you got tangled up with Michelle. Worse, you went on to make a date with her the next morning. If Jal hadn't talked me out of it, I'd have killed myself. I love you so much, Sid. That incident really hurt me and tested that love."

Cassie wiped a tear away. Her conversation with Sid was arousing deep emotions.

"I'm really sorry about the choir concert." said Sid, "I totally messed up. I should have remembered you said you might come around and stayed in. I don't know how I can make it up to you. I could have lost you."

"For a start," said Cassie, "You should resist the temptation to pull stunts like the one that landed you in here. Also, it would help if you thought hard about what your 'best friend' gets you involved in."

"Are you saying that I should stop seeing Tony?" asked Sid.

"No, of course not!" said Cassie, "Just think hard about the possible consequences when he involves you in anything. He just loves to manipulate people, and up to now, you've been a willing victim."

"What should I do?" asked Sid.

"Be your own man, Sid." said Cassie, "Come out from his shadow. As I said, you're so much more relaxed, so much more yourself when he's not around. You're spending so much of your time and energy trying to please him. It's just not worth it. The people you should please are those who genuinely care about you, not those who look at you as some kind of 'sidekick' who will always do what they want."

"I realise where you're coming from." said Sid, "I suppose I have put my friendship with Tony first, probably because I felt I had nowhere else to go. Despite everything, he has been my best friend for over ten years."

"Now you've got someone who loves you for what you are," said Cassie, "Who trusts you, who believes in you, who cares about you, who wants to be your closest friend."

As she said this, Cassie held Sid's hand and looked him straight in the eyes. Her comments had given him food for thought. He was now sure that Cassie loved him. He was also getting more certain about his own feelings for her. He was, as well, being forced to re-evaluate the position of Tony in his life. After all, he had been Tony's best friend and sidekick for a decade, but Tony was now having a negative impact on his close relationship with Cassie. He was beginning to realise that every time he seemed to be making progress with her, Tony did something which harmed the relationship. He was also coming to realise that he was more self-assured and confident when he was away from Tony, especially when Cassie was with him. At this point, he made a decision. He decided that love trumped mere friendship. He would take less notice of his 'friend' Tony and concentrate more on his loving relationship with his sweet Cassie.

The couple spent the next few minutes in silence, looking into each other's eyes and smiling. It was Sid who spoke first.

"I've got to admit it, Cass," said Sid, "You're right. You usually are. We seem to get on so well with each other as a couple. I am beginning to understand that Tony has been a somewhat toxic influence on our relationship. Every time I seem to be getting really close to you, he puts his oar in and tries to separate us, the choir concert being the most recent example."

"Tony's a nice enough person, Sid." said Cassie, "But he's not sensitive to people's feelings. That's why he tends to act without thinking of the consequences. I also sense that you're not very close to your dad. Your mum left, the morning after the choir concert. It could be that I'm the only one who really cares about you. I do care about you, Sid. I love you, so let's have a proper relationship. I know, deep in my heart how you feel about me without you telling me."

"You do?" Asked Sid.

"Of course I do!" said Cassie, "It's the way you look at me, the way you touch me, the way you hold me. I knew you were falling in love with me way back when you kissed my cheek in Abigail's kitchen. Then, instead of shagging me, which was what Tony had intended, you tried to get to know me. That was so sweet of you. Since then, despite all the blunders and misunderstandings, I've realised that you are a totally wonderful human being. There can't be many people like you in the world, so I don't want to lose you, ever."

Sid felt himself blushing. He wasn't used to such kind words.

"I - I just don't know what to say, Cass." stuttered Sid.

"Don't say anything." said Cassie, "Just accept that I'm now your girlfriend, and always will be."

"Thank you, Cass." said Sid.

This unexpected meeting, which began with Sid being taken to hospital critically dehydrated after starving himself for a week, developed into a heart to heart conversation. The result was that Sid and Cassie declared their love for each other and realised that they were truly a couple. Sid remained Tony's friend, but did not fall for any of his schemes. He found that he could make his own decisions and enjoy a full relationship with his beautiful girlfriend, Cassie. It did not occur to him immediately, in fact it took several weeks for him to realise that he had finally achieved his ambition to 'be like Tony'.


End file.
